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2. NPPD owns 460 acres, State of Wyoming owns 430 acres, and the Nature Conservancy <br />owns 1500 acres, it is assumed that of the 29,000 acres, 8,000 acres will be purchased by <br />the Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust, and 2,400 acres are presently owned <br />by the National Audubon Society. Based on existing and projected acquisitions, about <br />15,000 acres would remain to be acquired by the Program. <br />3. In order to acquire 15,000 acres of habitat it would be necessary to purchase 1.25 times <br />the amount of land needed for actual habitat, or 18,750 acres. <br />4. All the land would have to be purchased outright. <br />5. Of the 18,750 acres, 8,000 acres would be existing agricultural land purchased at cost <br />of $2,000 per acre for a total of $16,000,000, and 10,750 acres would be non-agricultural <br />river bottom land purchased at cost of $1,000 per acre for a total of $10,750,000. <br />Based on the above assumptions, the estimated capital cost for land acquisition by the Program <br />is $26,750,000. <br />In addition, it is estimated that the initial cost of habitat development on the acquired land that <br />will be userl for habitat (15,000 acres) will be an average of $100/acre for a cost of $1,500,000. <br />Every effort will be made by the Conservation Committee to reduce capital investments through <br />use of innovative acquisition strategies, including leases, easements, and donations. It is <br />anticipated that the Committee will develop incentives for landowners to participate, such as <br />offering to clear and maintain habitat land that is voluntarily put into the Program, while the <br />landowners retain ownership of that land. To the extent that habitat management activities meet <br />or partially meet the block/segment goals in any reacll, Program acquisition in that reach will <br />be correspondingly reduced. <br />39